Commenting as the government today set out their spending plans
for the next few years, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of
school leaders’ union NAHT, said:
“The additional recovery funding announced today is welcome,
though it falls far short of the £13-15bn independent experts
have said is needed.
“Children and young people have been hugely affected by the
pandemic. The government has made bold claims about ‘levelling
up’ and ‘no child left behind’. The investment announced today
doesn’t meet those goals or the futures needs of the country.
“The increase in per pupil spending announced by the government
takes us back to 2010 levels. This is no proud boast, as it
represents a failure to invest in children’s futures for over a
decade.
“Schools will do their best with what they are given, as they
always do. It is important that schools are able to spend
recovery money flexibly on the programmes they know work best for
the children in most need in their schools.
“Two of the biggest areas of concern for schools are special
educational needs funding and children’s mental health. The
government urgently needs to publish the findings of their SEND
review and commit the money needed to address the SEND crisis in
schools. It is unacceptable that two years on from starting the
review, the government has still not taken any action.
“Overall, this is a much-needed investment for schools, but it
still doesn’t fully recognise that education is an investment in
not only our children’s life chances, but in the nation’s
future.”
